J.J. Hoover's career was supposed to take off. He had worked his way up to the closer’s job with the Cincinnati Reds, and he envisioned himself taking the opportunity and running with it.
Instead, last year was the worst of his career. He lost the closer’s job. He was sent to the minors, taken off the 40-man roster. He wound up with the Diamondbacks on a minor-league contract, a deal that came with no guarantees.
But Hoover came to camp with the belief that he was in a good situation, that things would work out for him.